These electron photomicrographs were provided by Dr. J.A. Scott, School of Chemical Engineering, University of Bath, Bath, UK.
These methods are taken from "Existence and Development of Natural Microbial Populations in Wooden Storage Vats Used for Alcholic Cider Maturation" J. Am. Soc. Brew. Chem 53(3);117-120, 1995
A block of planed English vat oak was cut into nine 2.5 cm sided cubes. The cubes were secured with nylon thread and evenly spaced along a 40 cm length of stainless steel rod. This apparatus was sterilized by autoclaving and suspended in a storage vat of fermented cider. All cubes were held 1 m below the surface.
Taking care to avoid allowing the wood cubes to dry out, the outer surface of each weekly collected sampels were sliced with a sharp blade to yeild sections of less than 1 mm in thickness. Similar sections were removed from the center of an approximate depth of 1.25 cm from each cube of wood by cleaving the wood in half. The sections were fixed and examined by Scanning Electron Microscopy.
The photographs here are of wood that was suspended in cider vats for ten weeks. The control wood was prepared in an identical manner to the treated wood except for the fact that it was not suspend in the cider vats.
The microorganisms found in cider vat oak include; Saccharomyces spp., non-Saccharomyces spp., lactic acid bacteria and acetic acid bacteria. The authors found that each storage vat possessed an individual microflora that persists throughout the production cycle of emptying, claening and drying.
CULTURE PHOTOS
WOOD SAMPLES FOR MICROBIAL COLONIZATION & PREPARATION FOR SEM.
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